Red Notebook
by SempieSquad
Summary: The triumphs and hardships of Hogwarts students after the Second Wizarding War.
1. Chapter 1

An old Asian woman sits on a red barrel arm chair in front of a glowing fireplace. Her straight black hair is graying as the roots, but her brown eyes are still lit up with bravery, adventure, and mischief. She's flipping through what looks like an old notebook. It's red as well, with intricate gold patterns along the borders. A little boy, probably six years old, runs into the room. He smiles up at her and sits cross-legged on the carpet in front of the fire. She acknowledges him with a knowing smile, and flips to the first page.

"Ah, you want to hear more of Nana Quinn's adventures. But aren't you supposed to be in bed?" She smirked when the boy grinned cheekily at her. His stormy blue eyes reflected the fire, and in that moment, it reminded the old lady of the ambition of two Slytherins she had met during her years as a student at Hogwarts.

"I didn't wake mummy and daddy up, Nana." Suddenly, a sound came from the next room. The old lady rolled her eyes.

"I know you're there, you can come out." Two more children, one a little older than the first, and the other a little younger, clambered over and sat down next to the blue eyed boy. The oldest was a girl with straight black hair styled in a bob with a red ribbon keeping it out of her brown eyes. The old woman smiled, this was how she used to wear her hair. The youngest had wild, light brown hair and steely blue eyes. He had amazingly pale skin, almost translucent.

"We want to hear more stories, Nana Quinn!" The eldest exclaimed, clapping her hands. The old woman raised an eyebrow.

"Do you now? You know, it's way past your bedtime."

"It's the weekend, Nanakin," the youngest tried to pronounce her name. The middle child, who had arrived first, sat quietly, fiddling with his hands. The old woman almost laughed; he was so much like his grandfather.

"Please? We want to hear about Grandma Amelia!" The girl with black hair begged.

"And Hogwarts and Albany and you and Luke and Tristan and Quentin and Amelia and-" The youngest boy continued. The old woman rolled her eyes.

"Fine. Gregory, Eloise, Barclay, I'll tell you a few stories. But you have to promise to go to bed afterwards, yes?"

"Yes!"

"We promise!"

"Okay."

"Okay. Let's start from the beginning, shall we?" The old woman reached over to a pair of glasses that were resting on the coffee table and put them on. "The beginning…" Nana Quinn smiled sadly at the first entry in her notebook. "I suppose we should start with Harry, then."

"Harry Potter?!" Eloise exclaimed. "You knew Harry Potter?!" The old woman chuckled.

"The next best thing, as he used to say. Harry _Wolfenstein_."

"Oooooohhhh." Eloise looked disappointed.

"What did he look like?" Barclay asked.

"Tall, skinny, blonde." Nana Quinn answered. "With a wide smile and unusually sharp teeth."

"What house was he in?" Gregory spoke up quietly.

"He was a Gryffindor, like myself. Cocky bastard. He was one of the bravest men I have ever known, too." Eloise, now interested, smiled.

"Tell us, tell us!"

The fire crackled and popped as the old woman began to tell her story.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry

"Wolfenstein , Harry."

There was not a single doubt in Harry's mind that he would be a Gryffindor, just like his mother and father before him. So, unlike most of the wimps in his grade, he swaggered up to the stool as his name was called. He made swift eye contact with his new friend, Elliot, whom he had met and befriended five minutes into the train ride. They bonded quickly over their mutual love of theater and music. Sure, Elliot was in Ravenclaw, but they could still be friends, right?

The hat slipped over his head, obscuring his view of the countless students looking up at him in awe. Just as they should be.

 _Cocky, are we?_ Most would jump or shudder at the sudden omnipotent-like voice that echoed in his head, but not Harry. He sat still, as if he were glued to the chair. _Well, then. I can see you have your mind set on Gryffindor. You're easier to sort than most. Have it your way then…_

" _ **GRYFFINDOR**_!"

Harry jumped down from the platform the stool was resting on, eager to join his new housemates. He sat down next to a boy with medium length curly auburn hair, and held his hand out to shake.

"I'm Harry," he tells the boy proudly. "Harry Wolfenstein ." The boy shakes his hand and grins.

"I'm Finn Murdock."

"Who's Finn?" Eloise asked curiously. The old woman frowned at the interruption.

"I'm getting to that part, be patient." She scolded. "Next is Amelia."

"Yay! Granny Amelia!" Barclay exclaimed, clapping his hands.

Amelia

The train ride to Hogwarts had been a little nerve racking at first. Scratch that. _Extremely_ nerve racking. Once she boarded the train, she was overwhelmed by the noise of children shouting and miscellaneous objects being thrown (or flying) about. Trying to find an empty seat was so stressful, she thought she might have an aneurysm. Luckily, she had managed to find an empty train compartment, and she settled herself in. She curled up on the space next to the window and pulled out of her satchel a book of spells she had brought to read and go over. She was reviewing a particularly intriguing passage about transfiguration when there was a knock at the compartment window. Someone pulled the door open quietly, and the noise of the upperclassmen farther down the train flooded the compartment.

"Can I sit here?"

She looked up to find the source of the voice. A very disheveled looking girl with pixie cut brown hair stood in the doorway. By the looks of it, it seemed like she had almost missed the train, out of breath and red cheeked.

"Sure, I'm Amelia Drave," the girl with the book smiled kindly.

"I'm Albany Winterbourne, nice to meet ya," the other one said, plopping herself onto the seat across from Amelia. Amelia went back to reading her book, while Albany silently observed the changing view outside of the window. The latter began fidget and shift uncomfortably in her seat.

"So- you nervous for the sorting? Albany asked. Amelia glanced up from the book she was reading. A contemplating look fell over her face like a shadow.

"I guess, lots of people are nervous," she replied.

"You're right. It's just the anticipation of what is going to happen that's getting to me." The two struck up a conversation, topics ranging from favorite subject, to favorite celebrity stories.

"I've gotta say, Harry Potter is my favorite," Albany said.

"Hm, well I've gotta go with Dumbledore," Amelia said.

"Ah, good choice good choice," Albany replied, "But he always seemed to hire the sketchy professors, and was never there when they needed the most help." The two chuckled, Dumbledore was indeed a great wizard, but not exactly perfect.

"Excuse me, is there a seat I can sit in there, all of the other car are filled to the brim." The duo turn to the doorway to see an Asian girl who was short, but not too short. She had already changed into her robes and looked a bit anxious and disoriented.

"Yeah," Amelia said scootching to her right, "The more the merrier. I'm Amelia Drave and that's Albany Winterbourne." Albany gave a small wave.

"I'm Quinn LeMay," the girl said, "You guys should probably put your robes on soon, we're getting close. After the girls returned from changing, they found Quinn surrounded by pile of candy.

"The trolley came by and I didn't really know what you guys liked. I like everything, so I bought a bunch of it," she stated while opening a chocolate frog. It jumped up, clinging to Albany's glasses. The girl went cross eyed, staring at the piece of animated chocolate. Amelia laughed as it crawled onto her eye.

"Sorry about that, you can have it if you want," Quinn said sheepishly.

Through the duration of the train ride, the girls chatted and got to know each other. They soon became friends and the view outside the window changed to the famous Hogwarts castle.

"Are you guys ready?" Albany asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Amelia responded.

"It won't be too bad guys, it's just sorting us," Quinn added, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, but what if we get separated,"Albany sighed.

"We'll just have to make new friends then," Amelia said encouragingly.

Once everyone had entered the great doors of Hogwarts, they were escorted by a teacher into the famous dining hall. The clear night sky could be seen above them, and the hall was illuminated by dozens of floating candles. There were four tables lined up in the great hall. Two framing the path to the teachers and the others parallel to them. At the end of the aisle was a stool with a battered looking black hat on top of it. A stern looking teacher stood next to it, holding a long list of names. The procession of students stopped at the end of the path and waited for further instructions. Silence fell over the dining hall as the older students watched the newbies, sizing them up.

"Is it just me, or does that hat look like it has a face," Albany whispered, staring at the black hat.

"Hm, now that you mention it, it kind of does," Amelia whispered back.

After Headmaster O' Donnell gave a speech, welcoming the new students, thunderous applause filled the hall. The new students looked around warily at the enthusiasm of the others. The tables soon quieted down, and the sorting began.

"Argaji, Purab," the stern teacher announced, holding up the hat. After a bit of shuffling and pushing, a boy hesitantly walked up to the stool and sat down. He composed himself, putting on a poker face. The hat was placed on his head, causing him to jump slightly and go through a series of facial expressions.

"What happening?" Quinn asked.

"I have one idea," Albany responded.

"I guess the hat is somehow sorting him?" Amelia stated.

Out of nowhere, the hat shouted," _ **RAVENCLAW**_!"

The crowd of students flinched at the sudden voice, as the table to the far left cheered and hooted, welcoming a new member.

The list of names was going by slowly, they were currently on Donovan, Quentin.

" _ **HUFFLEPUFF!"**_ The hat shouted.

' _I wonder when I'm going to go,_ ' Amelia thought to herself, her last name did start with the letter "D" after all.

"Drave, Amelia."

"Well here I go," she muttered.

"Good luck," Albany whispered.

"You'll do great," Quinn added.

Amelia walked up to the stool, neither hesitant, or overly confident. She sat down and the hat was placed on her head. Her vision was engulfed in total blackness.

 _So you trust your friends, ey?_ Amelia jumped and looked around trying to find the voice.

 _Curious too I see. Slytherin could be good fit, however, you seem to like to follow rules._

" So what other house should I be put in?" Amelia asked.

 _Hmmm, where to put you, where to put you. You have intelligence, but you like to put your friends first. You are brave, but aren't too rash. I see now…._

" _ **HUFFLEPUFF!"**_

Amelia quickly scurried off of the stool and sat in the chair closest to her at the cheering table. The boy before her sat to her left.

"Hello, I'm Amelia Drave," she greeted him.

"Quentin, but I guess you already know that," he shook her hand. "What did you think of the whole hat experience?" He asked her. She paused for a moment thinking about her answer.

"I guess interesting to say the least," she said. The two of the chuckled.

' _Well at least I've made one friend_ ,' Amelia thought as the list of names continued. She wished the best of luck to her two other friends who still waited in the slowly thinning crowd.


	3. Chapter 3

Tristan

"Colt, Tristan."

If someone had told Tristan that he and his siblings had magical powers and were destined to go to a famous boarding school for witches and wizards not even a month ago, he would have laughed in their faces. The days leading up to today had been filled with excitement and anticipation. Now, however, all he could feel was anxiety and nervousness.

His legs felt like they were made of jelly as he made his way up to the stern-looking teacher holding the hat that determined the rest of his life. His knees were shaking as he sat on the wooden stool, and before he even had time to adjust to the new perspective, his world was plunged into darkness by the folds of the hat.

 _Another one? How many Colts are there?_ Tristan jumped at the voice inside his head, choosing to stay silent and not answer its question. _Anyway… your siblings are both in Ravenclaw, but I sense your desire to be set apart from them. Odd, as usually twins and triplets want to stay together. But where to put you? Not as cunning as a Slytherin, and you don't seem like the type of person to be rash and reckless. I'll put you in…_

" _ **HUFFLEPUFF!"**_

Tristan refused to make eye contact with his siblings as he made his way towards the Hufflepuff table. The guilt almost ate him up inside, a feeling that wouldn't go away for another year. (But let's not get ahead of ourselves).

Quentin

"Donovan, Quentin."

Usually, Quentin was always sure of himself. In muggle school (something his mother insisted he go to), the health teachers always promoted having good self-esteem, and normally, he had just that. But this was different. This was standing in front of hundreds of kids, all silently judging him. His knees were shaking. His face was an unnatural pasty white color, even for him. He could barely breathe.

"Quentin?" Someone nudged him forward, and he stumbled up the steps to the stool, and tried to ignore the low rumble of laughter rising up from the students. The hat was placed over his head, and he waited in awe and anticipation of what was to come.

 _Nervous, are we? Most first years are, and not without good reason. Kind, loyal...yes, there's no doubt about where you'll go._

" _ **HUFFLEPUFF!"**_

Quentin hurried from the stool, as if someone were chasing him. He sat down quickly, the cheering next to him nearly blowing out his eardrums. A boy sitting next to him held out a hand for him to shake, which Quentin took, grateful for a friend.

"I'm Tristan Colt, second year."

"I'm Quentin. Quentin Donovan." Tristan grinned.

"Nice to meet you, Quentin. You're going to do just fine here."

Quinn

"Lee, Alex." Quinn watched as an Asian boy with a buzzcut walked up to the chair. He had an air of confidence around him, and as he sat down, he twisted around just in time to give the crowd a slightly arrogant thumbs up. The hat was dropped on his head, and his lax posture straightened a bit.

" _ **GRYFFINDOR!"**_

The hat was taken off of Alex's head and immediately, he ran over to join his new, cheering classmates.

 _I wonder which house I'll be in…_ Quinn thought to herself. She honestly had no idea. She had thought about the school and the people mostly, hardly acknowledging the fact that she was going to be sorted. She wasn't that brave, but she was smart. Maybe Ravenclaw? But she wasn't really that witty. Maybe Slytherin? No, she upheld the rules, and hardly ever bent them. Hufflepuff? Possibly. Amelia was in Hufflepuff, that would turn out pretty well.

"LeMay, Quinn."

 _Oh no. This is it._ She held her chin high and marched over to the chair. She sat down, and the hat dropped on her head, just as it had on Alex Lee.

 _You have a lot of self doubt, don't you?_ It took a lot of willpower not to jump off the chair and throw the hat across the room. She chose to ignore it instead. _Ah, but you are brave. You aren't just bark._ That's it.

"What are you talking about?!" Quinn whispered harshly. The hat ignored her.

 _You have bravery, but I don't think you know it just yet. And I know exactly how you can!_

"Wha-"

" _ **GRYFFINDOR!"**_

That was the last house she would have expected. Nevertheless, she walked over to the cheering table after the hat was taken off. A huge smile of relief and surprise adorned her face. She sat in between Alex Lee and a pale boy with wavy light brown hair, who introduced himself as Ben Gram.

By the end of the ceremony, her face hurt from smiling.

Albany

"Winterbourne, Albany."

By the time Albany's name was called, she was one of the only kids left to be sorted. She stumbled up the steps, her mind whirling. Her stomach was full of butterflies, and she desperately searched for a familiar face in the crowd of students, but found neither Quinn nor Amelia. A teacher with thin, wispy gray hair and wire glasses placed the hat on her head, and soon, all she could see was darkness.

 _Hello, there._ Albany jumped at the sudden voice in her head.

"Hello?" She whispered.

 _No need for formal introductions. I can already tell how cunning you are, so this should be easy._

"But what about my friends?" Albany whispered nervously.

 _You don't need to worry about that, my dear. You three will still have classes together, and I'm sure. You will make a lot of new friends in your new house._

"And what would that be?"

 _Well, I'd say…_

" _ **SLYTHERIN!"**_

Albany jumped off the stool so quickly, she forgot the hat was on her head, and had to bring it back to the tall (slightly scary looking) teacher, who was chuckling under her breath. She huffed, and marched back to the Slytherin table with her arms crossed across her chest. She sat down in between a girl with very curly, long, dark hair and tanned skin, and an older looking boy with shaggy blonde hair. He was sitting, slouched over the table, almost as if he were trying to conceal something dangerous.

"What's your name?" She turned to the older boy. He must have been at least one year older than herself. He looked at her strangely.

"Tor," he mumbled, turning away as soon as he introduced himself.

 _Well, I guess this will be an interesting seven years,_ Albany thought to herself as the next person was sorted.


	4. Chapter 4

Luke

" _ **GRYFFINDOR!"**_

The Gryffindor table erupted into applause, whooping and hollering. The dim lights that adorned the walls of the dining room burned, and the stars on the ceiling blazed brighter.

All of a sudden, it felt as if a weight had been dropped upon Luke's shoulders. His brother was in Gryffindor… a house he knew he would never be able to be sorted into. Finn grinned widely at him, brushed his floppy red curls out of his bright eyes, and gave him a thumbs up as he made his way to the Gryffindor table. They immediately cheered louder and patting him on the back - some even reached across the table to high-five him. Luke watched as his brother was surrounded by Gryffindors. He looked relaxed and at home with them. For a few selfish moments, Luke felt betrayed. Finn had been his brother his whole life, and now he didn't even look back at his younger twin.

All Luke could do was watch him from his hiding place behind two taller first years with a sickening feeling in his chest. He played with fraying strings on his sleeve, not daring to look back up at the stool his brother had been sitting on a moment before. He knew he was next.

"Murdock, Luke!"

Luke gulped. His feet felt as though they were made of lead as he trudged up to the extremely tall teacher who was holding the sorting hat and sat on the stool. The hat dropped onto his head, flattening his curly brown hair. The brim dipped and covered his hazel eyes. It was surprisingly cold, considering how many people had had it on their head in the last twenty minutes. He gripped the seat of the stool, and looked out into the darkness of the hat's brim.

 _I've never seen a set of twins so different. Your brother went to Gryffindor, but where should I put you?_

"Gryffindor, please Gryffindor," Luke muttered under his breath. He gripped the stool tighter.

 _You know you don't belong there._ The hat paused. _You have big plans for yourself, don't you? Gryffindor would only get in your way._

"I don't care." Luke's tone was persistent, desperate. "I just want to be with my brother."

 _Slytherin will help you on your way to greatness. That's where you belong._

"No," Luke muttered, squeezing his eyes shut. "Please don't. We can't be separated."

 _Until you learn what a true sacrifice is, you'll only belong in…_

" _ **SLYTHERIN!"**_

The Slytherin table exploded into cheers, but Luke didn't want to move when the hat was pulled from his head. He looked as the Gryffindor table, desperately searching for Finn's familiar red hair. He couldn't find him. He couldn't _see_ him. His dark eyes darted around the gigantic room, his heart thumping in his throat. Reluctantly, he slid off the stool and stumbled over to the table of students adorned in black robes with green and silver embellishments, running his hands through his medium length, curly, light brown hair.

 _What am I going to do? Mom and Dad are going to kill me._

Finn

Finn wasn't nervous, unlike his brother. He knew that they would both get into Gryffindor. After all, their whole family has been in Gryffindor, so surely they both would be as well.

"Murdock, Finn." Finn glanced at his brother quickly, smiling at him reassuringly.

He walked with a certain confidence, one that most people would kill to have. The hat was dropped over his head, and the brightly lit Great Hall left his sight.

 _A Murdock. Interesting. I haven't sorted one of you in years. It's clear where you want to go. You're a true Gryffindor at heart, but are you aware that your brother might not join you in the house of glory?_

"What are you talking about?" Finn asked the hat. "Luke and I do everything together. There's no way we could be separated."

 _If you insist, then, boy…_

" _ **GRYFFINDOR!"**_

 **Ok, so that's the prologue done. It's organized in a slightly confusing way, so here are the details:**

 **Albany, Quinn, Quentin, and Amelia are, from here on out, fifth years.**

 **Luke, Finn, Harry, and Tristan are, from here on out, sixth years.**

 **They were sorted with a year difference in between them, which isn't that clear, but there it is.**

 **Now that the sorting is out of the way, let the story begin! Please feel free to review!**


	5. Ch5:Boys, Girls, & an Alarmed Pigmy Puff

Boys, Girls, and a Terrified Pigmy Puff

"Elliot O'Connor, you get your sorry little ass in this compartment or else I'll give your seat to a first year!" Harry ignored the frustrated looks he was receiving from parents, who were covering their younger children's' ears.  
"Merlin's beard, Harry, you're so loud," Tristan complained, not even bothering to look up from the day's newspaper.  
"I've got personality," Harry corrected. "And besides, in five years, when I'm a famous wizard known world-wide, and you're a lowly inn-keeper, you'll be able to say 'I knew that Harry Wolfenstein when he was simply a little schoolboy."  
"You're six foot two, Harry," Tristan reminds the blonde. "You're anything but little. And for the last time, I'm not going to be an inn-keeper."  
"Ladies and gentlemen, the party has arrived!" Elliot exclaimed as he burst into the compartment. Harry and Tristan look up at him, each with an eyebrow raised skeptically.  
"Thanks for the announcement, Elliot, but I got here way before anyone else," Harry said.  
"And what 'ladies'?" Tristan asked. "Last I checked, there were no girls willing to hang out with us. Unless you count that fifth year Harry's always following around." Elliot and Tristan snickered at the sight of their friend's now quite red face.  
"I don't follow her around!" He protests. "And you're one to talk, Tristan, always defending that Hufflepuff girl and her friend from the Slytherins."  
"Oh, excuse me for being a good person," Tristan said sarcastically, but his true motives had been revealed, and neither Elliot nor Harry were fooled by his pink-tinted cheeks. The small group of boys were interrupted by a group of third and fourth year girls, all Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, giggling and squealing in front of the compartment door. Elliot and Harry shared a look, already well-aware of their growing fan base.  
"I don't know what those girls see in either of you," Tristan commented. "I find both of you vaguely repulsive." Harry, who was making faces in the window, busily attempting to be seductive towards the younger girls, kicked Tristan in the shin playfully (though it still hurt), while Elliot just laughed, and tried to ignore the girls.

"Ugh, those girls won't shut up!" Amelia complained loudly, hitting her head against the window of the train. Quentin laughed at his friend's antics, earning himself a playful glare.  
"Have Quinn and Albany gotten here yet?" He asks, hoping to distract Amelia from the loud (obnoxious) giggles and squeals in the hall.  
"No, but they should be getting here soon. Why?" Amelia raised her eyebrows suspiciously. "Hoping to see a certain Gryffindor girl?" Quentin scoffed, his cheeks now a light pink.  
"No, of course not. Why would you even say that?" Amelia laughed.  
"Because it is so obvious that you like her. And if I'm correct, she likes you, too. Like, a lot."  
Speak of the devil, and she shall appear.  
Almost as if Amelia had summoned her, Quinn slid open the compartment door, immediately freezing at the sight of Quentin.  
"Quinn! Albany! You're here, finally." Amelia turns towards Quentin. "Quentin, aren't you glad to see them?" Amelia looks at her friend expectantly, but all he can do is stutter miserably.  
"Uh...u-um...y-yeah." Albany quickly pushed past Quinn, taking the seat next to Amelia, all with an evil smirk on her face. Quinn looked at the two scheming girls, and if looks could kill, they would both be dead in less than a second.  
"You'll never guess what my dad told me before I came here today," Albany said excitedly. "He heard from the Minister himself that there's going to be a Triwizard Tournament this year. Isn't that exciting?"  
"What's a Triwizard Tournament?" Quentin asked the girls, a confused expression on his face.  
"You filthy peasant," Amelia says to him. "How can you not know what the Triwizard Tournament is? Surely someone's told you about it!" Quentin shook his head.  
"Nope." The three girls all shared a knowing look.  
"Then let the lecture begin!" Quinn exclaims.

By the time the sun was setting, the compartment was full of empty candy boxes. Quinn was asleep with her head resting on Quentin's shoulder, who, while pleased, also looked incredibly uncomfortable with the situation. Amelia was reading one of their textbooks for the year, occasionally grinning at the sight of her two friends.  
"Well," Albany said, standing up, "I'm going to go get changed. We ought to be arriving soon." She marched out of the compartment, clutching her school robes to her chest. All of a sudden, she ran right into a tall figure, the impact knocking her to the ground and spilling her clothes all over the floor. She glared up at the person as she knelt down to the floor, ready to make a snarky comment, when he turned around.  
"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry!" He exclaimed. He knelt down, and began helping her collect her clothes. She took them from him, taking in his appearance fully. He had longish, curly, messy brown hair, and was very tall, with curious hazel eyes.  
'Damn, he's cute,' she thought to herself.  
"Err...thanks?" The boy laughed nervously and Albany brought her hand to her mouth in shock.  
"Did I say that out loud?" She asked in horror. The boy nodded.  
"Yeah."  
"Sorry about that." Albany cracked her knuckles nervously. Horrible habit. The boy nodded down to her robes.  
"See you later, then?" Albany frowned, confused, before looking from her robes, to his, only now noticing that he was also a Slytherin.

"Yeah. Definitely." She stood in the hall in shock as he walked past her, and groaned loudly. "Why me?" She asked herself, before continuing to the bathroom at the front of the train, her mind now occupied with thought of the mysterious boy in Slytherin that somehow, she had never noticed.

Amelia was playing with her pigmy puff when Albany returned. She pushed the doors open with such force, it was a surprise that they didn't break off. The abrupt noise, however, was enough to wake up Quinn and scare the pigmy puff.  
"Albany, no!" Amelia exclaimed as she watched the blue ball of fluff scuttle away as fast as possible, right into the compartment across from theirs. "Ah, shit," she muttered. "That's a compartment full of sixth years!" With an exasperated sigh, she slipped past Albany, taking a deep breath before knocking on the already partially open doors of the compartment.  
"Excuse me?" She asked nervously. "Have any of you seen a blue pigmy puff in here? My friend scared it, and I think it went in here."  
"This little guy?" Amelia turns her head towards a familiar Hufflepuff, who always seemed to get her and Quentin out of trouble with the Slytherins. He was holding her pigmy puff close to his chest, cradling it.  
"Yeah!" She exclaimed happily, holding her hands out for the puff. The sixth year handed it over, and she grinned. "Thank you!" She said before hurrying back to her compartment. "What did I miss?" She asked her friends, sitting back down next to Albany.  
"Albany's in love," Quinn told her sleepily. "With some guy she met five seconds ago."  
"It could happen, Quinn," Albany protests. "He's in Slytherin. I don't know why I never noticed him before!" Amelia laughed.  
"It's still better than that seventh year she had a crush on that looked like that famous actor," she pointed out to Quinn, who shrugged.  
"I guess so. But I'm still not forgiving you for waking me up."

"He touched my clothes…" Albany said dreamily, smiling while pulling her Slytherin cloak hood over her head. Amelia raised a brow.

"That's a little weird." She said, and Quinn and Quentin nodded. Albany ignored them and continued to chuckle darkly in the darkness of her hood.

"And that my friends is why this one," Quinn pointed to Albany, "Ended up I'm Slytherin."

"Oh come one, not all of us are evil," Albany argued.

"Sure," Quinn rolled her eyes. The two began to bicker, again, while Amelia and Quentin watched in amusement.


	6. Ch6:A Shy Twin, Drunk Sixth Year, Escapi

A Shy Twin, Drunk Sixth Year, Escaping Pigmy Puff, And a Triwizard Tournament?!

Once they reached the Great Hall, the four friends reluctantly split up after saying their temporary goodbyes. Albany ambled over to the Slytherin table and sat down in between a scowling brunette boy who was staring intensely at a textbook and a girl with amazingly curly long brown hair who was glaring at across the table at a boy with shaggy blonde hair; Tor. Quinn marched to the Gryffindor table, where she sat next to a tall girl with curly black hair pulled into a bun. Amelia and Quentin walked over to the Hufflepuff table and sat down, engaging in an animated conversation about the upcoming school year.

A crowd of nervous looking first years walk through the huge doors after everyone was seated. The candles floated in the air just as they did on the quartet's first day, which brought reminiscent smiles to their faces.

The first years were called up one by one, and each house cheered and welcomed their new peers. After the first years were all sorted, Headmaster O'Donnell stood at his podium, and waited for everyone to be quiet. It didn't take very long, as once they saw he was waiting, everyone silenced immediately.

"Now, as some of you may already know, there is a special event taking place here at Hogwarts this year. The Triwizard Tournament." All at once, the Hall erupted into excited whispers, and Amelia heard a Ravenclaw behind her spouting facts about the Tournament itself. She rolled her eyes. Sure, they were smart, but the Ravenclaws could be annoying sometimes.

Quinn immediately turned to her friend Kiana, a fellow Gryffindor and prefect this year.

"When do you think the other schools are coming?" Quinn asked her friend.

"I don't know, but they'd better not be staying in our dorms. I don't want anyone messing up my sleep schedule." The two girls burst into giggles, quieting down as Headmaster O'Donnell motioned for everyone to quiet down.

"Now, because the Quidditch field will be used for one of the tasks of the Tournament, it saddens me to tell you that the Quidditch Cup will not be taking place this year."

Immediately, various students burst into objection. The loudest was Harry Wolfenstein, a sixth year, who was now standing upright and cursing out the Headmaster. Quinn found herself staring at him, almost in a trance, turning away when he saw her staring and winked at her.

Albany was barely paying any attention to what the headmaster was talking about, and instead was scouring the Slytherin table for the guy she ran into. She finally found him, sitting at the edge of the table, all by himself, using his knife and fork to drum quietly on the edge of the table. Albany waited for the food to magically appear, before making her way over to him. She sat across from him, but he didn't look up, or make any indication that he saw her. Albany cleared her throat.

"Ahem." The boy looked up, and put his knife and fork down sheepishly.

"You're the girl from the train," he states.

"In the flesh," Albany told him, holding her hand out. He shook it.

"Luke." Albany grinned.

"Albany Winterbourne. Got a last name, Luke?"

"Murdock."

"Well, Luke Murdock, I don't know if you've noticed, but there seems to be a clone of you sitting at the Gryffindor table that's staring at you strangely." Luke nodded without looking back to affirm her statement. "So...that doesn't concern you?" The curly-haired boy shook his head.

"Nope. That's my twin brother. Ever since I was sorted into Slytherin, we haven't exactly seen eye to eye. You can imagine why."

"You grew taller than him, then?" Albany was well aware of how bad that joke was, but it made Luke smile nonetheless, which made it all worth it.

As the feast came to a close, Amelia was half asleep, watching Quentin playing with her pigmy puff. Slowly, students began to retreat to their common rooms, and the candles lighting up the hall were dimming gradually.

"We should get to the common room," Quentin said, suddenly realizing how tired his friend was. "Here, you can take this little guy back-hey, wait!"

The blue pigmy puff wasted no time in its escape, scurrying across the floor as fast as its paws could carry it. Amelia sighed in exasperation, getting to her feet. She hurried across the hall, not watching where she was going. The blue puff was huddling in a corner by the door, and as Amelia reached out to grab it, she ran into a tall, solid wall. The impact didn't cause her to fall on the ground, but her eyes widened as she looked up and saw that what she had run into was really a who, and that 'who' looked very mad. It was a tall male, wearing Slytherin robes and a permanent scowl on his face.

"S-Sorry," Amelia apologized weakly.

"Watch where you're going. Come on, Andrew." A boy in Amelia's year joined what must be his older brother, and together they stalked off. Amelia quickly grabbed her pigmy puff, and hurried back to the Hufflepuff table.

"You okay?" Quentin asked her. "You look like you just saw a ghost." Amelia blinked, and shook her head twice abruptly, attempting to shake the memory out of her brain.

"No, I'm...I'm fine. Just tired, that's all." Quentin thought about it for a minute, finally deciding to accept the answer.

"Let's get to the common room. We could both use some sleep right about now." Amelia grinned gratefully, and together, they made their way to the common room. By the time she was asleep, she had forgotten all about the terrifying encounter.

The Gryffindors, of course, were much more rowdy that night.

Harry and his friend Finn had managed to smuggle some butterbeer and fire whiskey from the kitchens, and by midnight, the majority of the seventh and sixth years were drunk and asleep on the floor and couches of the common room.

"Shouldn't you have done something about that?" Quinn asked Kiana, gesturing to the older students. Kiana shrugged.

"What good would it have done? Besides, they gave me free butterbeer." She holds up the now empty bottle, before placing it on the table. Quinn laughs, and turns her sight back to the sleeping students.

"They're so going to regret this tomorrow morning when they have classes. I heard sixth years have Potions first thing tomorrow with Professor Ruestell." Quinn groaned. The thought of having to go to another one of Professor Ruestell's classes brought an unhappy feeling to her chest, one she didn't want to have on a great night such as this.

"What do we have first?" Quinn asked. "Please tell me it's a good class." Kiana thought about it for a second.

"I think Divination with Shanderi." This earned a groan from both girls.

"Nobody wants to have Shanderi's class at nine in the morning!" Quinn protested. Kiana merely shrugged.

"He's not _that_ bad. I read in one of the textbooks that a ghost used to teach the class. At least Professor Shanderi makes it interesting."

All of a sudden, a loud crash could be heard throughout the room, and both girls turned their heads to see the sixth year known as Harry scramble to his feet, brown eyes wide, and his dirty blonde hair uncharacteristically messy. He looked around the room frantically, before collapsing back to the ground, hitting his head on a table as he did so. Kiana and Quinn winced, hurrying up to their dorm room, both unwilling to be around when he woke up again.


	7. Ch7: Hangover Induced Explosions, etc

Chapter 3

A Late Hufflepuff, Hangover Induced Explosions, And Detention

"Shit, shit, shit!"

Amelia hurriedly threw on one of her school jumpers before grabbing her shoes and running out of the dormitory. She made a mental note to get back at Silvya, who somehow didn't think to wake her up that morning.

The corridors weren't incredibly full, making it easy for her to run to the Great Hall. She ran passed a few students who gave her strange looks, but she turned the corner before they could ask her what the hell she was doing. She skidded to a stop next to Quentin, stealing a piece of toast buttered from his plate.

"Looking for Quinn?" She asked teasingly, following his line of sight across the Ravenclaw table to the Gryffindor fifth years.

"No!" He protested. "I'm uh… looking for the Gryffindor sixth and seventh years." Amelia turned her head slightly to the left, and noticed that the sixth and seventh year Gryffindors were indeed missing.

"Where are they?" she wondered out loud.

"Probably nursing their hangovers," a familiar sixth year from the train told them. He was sitting next to Quentin, with a bowl of cereal in front of him. "There was a huge party in their common room last night, and a couple guys snuck in alcohol."

"Huh," Amelia said, but she was no longer concentrated on the absent Gryffindors. The sixth year nodded towards her feet.

"Are you aware that you aren't wearing any shoes?" Amelia looked down at her bare feet, her face turning red. Quentin laughed loudly as she scrambled to put her shoes on, falling down as she did so. "Here." The sixth year offered her a hand, which she took gratefully.

"Thanks," she said.

"Yeah, no problem." He opened his mouth to say something, but someone from the Ravenclaw table stood up, and gestured to him urgently.

"Tristan, come on!" He called. "We have to get Harry before we go to Potions." The Hufflepuff, Tristan, smiled quickly at Amelia before getting up and following his friend out of the Great Hall. Amelia sat down in the now empty space, discarding her half-eaten toast.

"You okay?" Quentin asked her. "You look dazed." Amelia blinked, and tried to focus her mind.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm… just great."

Harry had expected at least a _bit_ of sympathy from Elliot and Tristan, but all they did was laugh as he complained about the throbbing headache and large bump on his head.

"D'you think Rummsell will teach us how to make a hangover potion?" Tristan asked Elliot overenthusiastically.

"I don't know," Elliot responded. " _Some_ of us could use it more than others. Don't you agree, Harry?" Harry merely groaned.

The classroom was dark, as usual, and students were already at their tables. Tristan separated from his friends, and went to sit with a short, brown-haired Slytherin, Will. Elliot and Harry sat in the middle of the classroom, and Harry immediately put his head on the table, his hair falling in front of his eyes. Elliot, on the other hand, started to get his things out right away, eagerly awaiting the class.

"Hey, Harry, why don't you try out this spell? It turns water into rum, and you know what they say: a bottle of rum a day keeps the hangover away!" If he were in his right mind, Harry would curse out his friend, and probably push him out of his chair.

Harry, however, was not in his right mind.

"Aguamenti," he muttered, and water filled his cauldron. He looked over the new spell once, before casting it aside carelessly. "Eye of rabbit, harp string hum. Turn this water into rum." He waved his wand, but nothing happened. "Eye of rabbit, harp string hum. Turn this water into rum." He waved his wand again, this time slightly more violently. There was a thunderous explosion and when the smoke cleared, the two teenagers each had soot covering their faces. Elliot blew out a puff of air, allowing some of the soot to fly off his hair and float down to the desk. He turned slowly to Harry, a murderous expression on his face.

"This…" He gestured to the mess in front of them, "...is why we can't have nice things." Harry's blonde hair was standing straight up, and was streaked with black soot.

"Detention, Wolfenstein, O'Connor. My office, seven o'clock sharp."

The boys whipped their heads to the back of the room, where Professor Rummsell had been grading papers silently.

Let's just say Elliot's mood didn't improve for a while.

Albany slammed her head on the table, groaning loudly.

"Shh!" A librarian sitting across the room put a boney finger to her lips in a familiar, strict, 'no-noise' gesture Albany had become accustomed to. She glared at the librarian, choosing instead to slam the book closed as loud as was humanly possible. "Excuse me, miss!" The librarian exclaimed in a hushed tone. "If you don't quiet down, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. We have rules, you know." Albany prepared to make a witty comment (something about shoving her rules up her ass) when she felt someone grabbing her arm and tugging her to her feet.

"We were just leaving, actually." The familiar voice of her new 'friend' immediately brightened Albany's mood. "Sorry to bother you." The librarian said nothing, and Luke led Albany out of the library as quickly as possible. "You can't let people get to you that easily. That argument could have easily turned into a week's worth of detentions."

"Is that a lot to you?" Albany laughed as Luke's eyes widened. "I'm only joking, I've never gotten detention once. And it's not my fault that librarian was so uptight!" Luke sighed, rubbing his temples with the palms of his hands in exasperation.

"You're missing my point." Neither of them said anything for a second, and soon, the both of them were laughing at the awkward silence.

"It's Professor Shandery's fault, really," Albany said. "I have a… love-hate relationship with that class _and_ the way he teaches it." Luke frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Divination is really an incredibly fascinating subject, but Professor Shandery makes it seem so complicated. Not to mention he's such a hard grader!"

"I've always found Divination boring, but it's your opinion, I guess. If you need any help studying, I know a sixth year that could help. He's the best in our year, honestly."

"Thanks, but I think I'll take my chances. Besides, if I'm selected for the Triwizard Tournament, then I'll be able to turn in my homework whenever I want to." Luke froze suddenly, causing Albany to slightly bump into his shoulder.

"Why would you ever want to enter your name in that tournament? Do you have a death wish?"

"Fame, glory, respect… it sounds amazing. I could be one of the most well-known witches in wizard history!"

"What are you, a Gryffindor?" Luke's tone had suddenly turned very dark.

"No, I just have hopes and dreams. Ambition! If I'm going to get far in life, I need to be brave enough to try things. It's what makes me a Slytherin." Luke shook his head.

"No. Bravery and ambition are two extremely different things. Trust me; I know." He shook his head slowly again, his mind in another place, and stalked away, leaving Albany alone in the hallway wondering what she did wrong.

"I swear, if I hear one more complaint from my brother about how they've cancelled Quidditch, I might just shoot myself." Quinn turned around to see Kiana plopping down onto the seat next to her.

"Well, he is the best chaser on the team," Quinn reasoned. "It's almost like he's a ninja." Kiana laughed.

"Eh. I don't see it."

"Hey, what time is it?" Quinn looked up to see Harry Wolfenstein leaning over her.

"Uhm, five of seven," she told him, and watched as his eyes widened.

"Fuck!" He shouted, and the entire common room quieted down, all staring at the pair, making Quinn want to disappear. "Finn Murdock, you were supposed to remind me what time it was!" The other Gryffindor merely shrugged, while Harry ran towards the door, shouting "Elliot's going to kill me!"

"Well, that was fun," Kiana said nonchalantly. The common room slowly became louder, and the girls continued with their business.

"I wonder what he had to do," Quinn mused.

"Who even knows what Harry Wolfenstein does most of the time?" Kiana asked.

"That's a good point," Quinn agreed. She turned back to her book, choosing to ignore the odd behavior of the sixth year. For now, at least.


	8. Ch8: Other Schools, Tournament, Flirts

Chapter 8

Other Schools, Entering the Tournament, and Failed Flirts

Two weeks had passed, and Albany spent them in the library, either with Quinn, Amelia, Quentin, or by herself. Every time she saw Luke in the common room or in the hallways, he always managed to disappear before she could catch up to him.

"I don't know what I did to offend him, Quinn," she told her friend. They were sitting underneath the stone arches of a corridor two minutes away from the great hall. "But it must've been really bad for him to ignore me like this."

"I wouldn't worry about it," Quinn said, fiddling with a loose string on the sleeve of her cloak. "But, if you want, I'll do some inquiring about his brother. Maybe something happened between them." Albany sighed with relief.

"Thanks, Quinn."

"No problem."

"Quentin, hurry up! The other schools are arriving today!" Amelia burst through the double doors of the boys' dormitory, tripping over a stool as she did so.

"Slow down, your brain will malfunction," he told her, laughing slightly at her antics. He was sitting on a red barrel armchair, pulling on his socks excruciatingly slowly. She crossed her arms stubbornly.

"Fine, then, I won't wait for you," she said, leaving the dormitory to make a point. She waited anxiously outside the door to the common room, pacing around without even realizing she was doing so.

"You look like you're trying to get away with a murder." Amelia froze, recognizing the voice of Harry Wolfenstein.

"I'm just excited," she said. "The other schools are coming today, and I want to get a good spot, and my friend is taking for _ever_ to get ready."

"So, you didn't murder anyone?" Amelia grinned, shaking her head.

"Nope." Harry sighed in disappointment.

"Well, that's a shame. Nothing exciting ever happens in this school. A murder would definitely shake things up a bit."

"Hey, Harry, what are you...doing here?" The door opened, revealing Tristan, who was looking from Harry to Amelia, before looking back to Harry.

"Elliot sent me to come get you, and if I didn't do what he said, I think he would actually kill me this time. He's _still_ pissed at me for being late to detention. Alright, well, we'd better be on our way. Hope your friend comes out soon," he says to Amelia, before motioning to Tristan to follow him.

"Er...thanks?" Amelia says, too quiet for anyone to hear her. "Huh. That was weird." The door opened again, but this time, Quentin was the one who exited.

"You ready?" He asks her questioningly.

" _I've_ been ready for a half hour," she reminds him. "Now, come on. I told Quinn and Albany that we'd meet them at the Great Hall."

The House tables had been removed from the center of the room, and were pushed against the walls. Numerous students were sitting on them, and some were even sitting on the floor. Luckily, Quinn and Albany had saved Quentin and Amelia seats, and they were able to see the whole hall.

"When are they going to get here?" Amelia complained.

"Why are you so excited?" Albany asked sourly. "I'll never understand how you have so much energy."

"Well, what's got your wand in a knot?" Amelia asked.

"Her crush isn't speaking to her," Quinn said. Albany sighed, watching Luke sit alone from across the hall.

"He looks so lonely," she said sadly. "But I know that if I go to sit next to him, he'll walk away."

"You just have to forget about him for now," Quinn told her friend. "You can't be sad your whole life because of a _boy_."

Before Albany could respond, the candles dimmed, and the double doors opened with a loud _boom_. All of the Hogwarts students watched the doors with anticipation and excitement, wondering what was to come. Then, a procession of students entered the hall, walking down the aisle of empty space. There was a mix of boys and girls, all in baby blue uniforms. The girls were all incredibly attractive, and the guys were just as equally good-looking.

"May I present the school of Beauxbatons, and their Headmistress, Madame Moreau." Headmaster O'Donnell announced the arriving school from the front of the hall.

Once all of the students arrived towards the front of the hall, they made their way towards the left of the room, lining up next to a table.

"Look," Quinn whispered, pointing to where Harry was attempting (and failing) to flirt with one of the French girls. She turned away from him, and whispered something to her friend, causing them both to laugh. "That was rude," Quinn said, but when she turned back to her friends, she found them all laughing as quietly as possible.

"That...was possibly the best...thing...I've ever seen!" Albany was clutching her side as she gasped for air.

"Shh!" A group of seventh years shushed the four friends, and while Albany, Quentin, and Amelia did the best they could to cease laughing, they all shared knowing looks, silently vowing to never forget that wonderful moment.

The Great Hall was silent once again, and there was another gasp as a group of stern-looking students entered the hall, all wearing an assortment of fur clothes: hats, coats, gloves...the list went on, but everyone could only state in awe at the strict demeanor of the students. They were followed by a just-as-stern older man, wearing what must have been the warmest clothing the school owned.

"How cold are they?" Quentin asked, but the girls could only shake their heads in wonder.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Durmstrang School of Magic!" Headmaster O'Donnell greeted the older teacher, and the Durmstrang students all made their way over to the right side of the hall.

After everyone had settled down again, Headmaster O'Donnell gave a signal to a few of the teachers, who immediately brought in a large object, covered completely with a cloth.

"What's that?" Amelia asked curiously.

"The Goblet of Fire!" Headmaster O'Donnell waved his wand, and the cloth disappeared, revealing a large goblet. Inside and slightly above the cup, blue flames flickered to life. A transparent blue line appeared around the cup, with a five foot distance from the line to the cup.

"All students who enter must be 15 or older. Any student younger than that who decides to cross this age line will find the consequences severe." He paused for a few seconds to let the information make an impression, before continuing. "Now, off with all of you. Free periods for the rest of the day, but all Hogwarts students must remember to return to classes bright and early tomorrow morning. Have a good rest of your afternoon."

The Great Hall erupted into excited chatter.

"I'm going to enter," Albany told her friends excitedly. "Anyone else?"

"I will," Amelia said. "I probably won't be chosen, but there's no hurt in trying."

"Well, I won't be," Quentin said. "I don't have a death wish, and besides, what good would I be representing the school?" Quinn nudged him playfully with her shoulder.

"You'd do a wonderful job representing Hogwarts, but it's your decision. I don't think I will, either. I'm not a fan of all that fame. Whoever is selected will probably be a seventh year, anyways."

The group of friends decided to go outside for the rest of the day, and sat under a huge tree by the Black Lake.

"I wonder what the Triwizard Tournament tasks will be," Albany said. "I bet they'll be really dangerous. I heard people have died in this tournament."

"That's horrible!" Amelia exclaimed. "You don't think the tasks will be _that_ dangerous?"

"Why do you think I'm not entering?" Quentin asked. "It might seem cowardly, but I very much like my life."

"And that, my friend, is why you are a Hufflepuff," Amelia told him.

"Hey!" He protested. "You're a Hufflepuff, too!"

"Did I ever say it was a bad thing?" The friends all laughed, and spent the rest of the day daydreaming about what the Tournament would be like.

"Harry, that's the fifth French girl you've flirted with, _and_ the fifth French girl to turn you down. Do you ever learn?"

"What's to learn? It's their loss, really. When I become Triwizard Champion-" Elliot scoffed.

"If your brain were as big as your head, you would be the smartest person in the world."

"Just you wait," Harry said. "When you're stuck teaching here, and Tristan is an innkeeper, I will be the most famous person in the Wizarding World."

"Harry, for the last time, I'm _not_ going to be an innkeeper."

"And who's to say I'll be _stuck_ teaching here?" Elliot asked.

"You," Harry told him, "in fifty years when you've done nothing with your life except teach miserable first years that it's levi- _o_ -sa, not levio- _sa_. Either way, I'm definitely going to be famous."

"Maybe in your dreams," Tristan told him.

"You can daydream all you want," Elliot said, "but don't forget Hagrid wants the sixth years to help teach the lesson on acromantulas tomorrow morning. You might get to hang out with that fifth year you like." Harry sighed dreamily.

"I wish. But you know Hagrid is choosing who will help who. I could get stuck with some know-it-all from Ravenclaw!" Elliot raised his eyebrows and pretended to stab himself.

"Brother - you have wounded me with your hurtful words!" The three boys ignored the strange looks from onlookers as they continued their 'skit.'

"No!" Harry exclaimed in mock shock. He knelt down next to Elliot, who had collapsed to the ground. "Forgive me, brother. I never meant for this to happen."

"Tell...my mother...I...love...her." Elliot laid his head back on the grass and feigned death.

"What did you do to him?" Tristan accused, kneeling on the other side of Elliot. "He's dead because of you!" Harry looked at Tristan, struggling to keep a straight face. Then, all three of them burst into laughter, collapsing into the comfortable grass, as the sky turned gray. Thunder boomed in the distance, and everyone rushed inside the castle, hoping to avoid the downpour. Soon, the three boys were left alone in the courtyard, all wondering what the next day would bring.


	9. Ch9:Cold, Magical Creatures, and Alone)

Chapter 5

Cold, Magical Creatures, and Alone Time ;)

When Hagrid had told Amelia's Care of Magical Creatures class that they were going into the Forbidden Forest to study thestrals, she thought he was joking. That is, before they all were forced outside into the cold, drizzling English weather.  
"It's freezing." Amelia's teeth chattered, and she crossed her arms, attempting to shield her hands from the cold against her white button-down shirt. "Why didn't I wear my cloak or my jumper?"  
"That's a good question." Quinn said, her gryffindor hood already up. The cloak was one size too large, as all of the second year sizes (which she would have gotten) had been purchased. The long black cloak trailed on the ground slightly, the maroon seams dragging along the ground. Her face was barely visible under the darkness of the oversized hood.  
"You look like a Dementor," Albany observed, hiking up her knee socks. "Egh, my hands are turning purple again." She had always had terrible circulation. Her cloak was the right size, and the green Slytherin seams rolled behind her in the wind.  
"It's so freaking cold." Amelia repeated, exhaling and seeing with distaste that her breath was visible. "I swear, it won't be long until this damn rain turns to snow."  
The trio continued marching along the rolling field behind the school that lead to the forest.  
Their class was made up entirely of fifth years, so Hagrid towered over them all, like a skyscraper.  
Amelia shivered, but narrowed her eyes as a few dark figures became visible, standing at the edge of the tree line. Oh no.  
"Alright, those there are sixth years. You'll each be pairing up with one of 'em. They all took this class last year, so they'll be teachn' you individually. I would pay attention if I was you. There's going to be a pop quiz sometime next week." And with that, the giant continued walking towards the figures next to the forest.  
Amelia's eyes widened. If Luke was down there, whether he paired with Albany or not, something bad would happen. Luke was still ignoring her pixie-cut Slytherin friend, and as of two weeks ago, whenever they're within the same 100 feet, the tension could be cut with a knife. The Hufflepuff looked over at Albany, who had pulled her hood over her head. She must be thinking the same thing.  
Amelia shivered violently as fat drops of water started to fall down from the blackening clouds. Her shirt was nearly soaked through. The fifth years followed Hagrid towards the edge of the forest, where the group of sixth years were standing. Amelia could see Harry standing towards the front of the group, towering over the group, along with Tristan and another guy who was just as tall as Harry, even while slouching. _Maybe that's Elliot_ , she thought.

"Listen up, now," Hagrid told the fifth years. "I'll read off the list of partners. Quentin Donovan, you'll be with Benjamin Schmitt. Amelia Drave, you're with Tristan Colt. Juliana Fastiggi, you're with Elliot Connors. Arden Lee will be with Tor Aronson, and Miss LeMay, you'll be with Harry Wolfenstein." He continued to read off the list of partners, until the only fifth years left were Albany, Sylvia, and a blonde boy named Tyler. "Albany Winterbourne, you'll be with Mr. Murdock here." As Hagrid paired Sylvia and Tyler with sixth years, Albany awkwardly shuffled towards Luke, bringing her cloak as close to her as she could, almost as if she were trying to hide inside the folds of fabric. "Alrigh', now, the thestrals are deeper in the forest. So let's get to it!" He clapped his hands together, a sound probably loud enough to be heard across the school grounds.

Amelia walked next to Tristan, shivering and rubbing her hands together in a poor attempt to warm them.

"Are you cold?" Tristan asks her. "Here, take my jumper." He pulled his Hufflepuff jumper over his head, and held it out to her.

"But what if you get cold?" She asked him, noticing that without his jumper, all he would have to keep the upper half of his body warm would be his white shirt.

"I'll be fine. Take it." Amelia reluctantly pulled the warm sweater over her head, allowing it to rest comfortably on her shoulders. It immediately warmed her, but refusing to admit that, she chose instead to focus on the path they were walking on.

Albany walked next to Luke in an awkward silence. It seemed to only get colder as they ventured deeper into the forest, and as the most combined with the darkness, it became difficult to see clearly.

"Look, I know you're mad at me, but you can't just ignore me forever, you know. You have to at least teach me about thestrals - woah…." Albany broke off, her eyes meeting a dark creature that resembled what could have been the skeleton of a Pegasus.

"What?" Luke asked, a confused expression on his face. "What do you see?" Albany didn't answer. She stretched her hand out, petting the creature's nose.

"It's beautiful…." Her voice was just a murmur, caught in the awe of the moment.

"You can see it?" Luke asked.

"See what?"

"The thestral."

"Yeah, can't you?" Luke shook his head.

"No. You can only see it if you've seen someone die." Albany's skin seemed to pale, and her blood went cold.

"You mean nobody else can see it?"

"Only if they've seen someone die, and remember it." There was a moment of silence between them.

"My great-grandmother." Her voice trembled.

"What?"

"I was the only one there when she...passed away. It was peaceful, though. I think she was ready." Luke reached out and took her hand, which felt warm compared to her own.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Don't be. She lived a long life. I'm making it sound worse than it really was."

"Still. I'm sorry." Albany didn't know what to say.

"Does this mean we're friends now?" Luke laughed, a pleasant sound to Albany's ears.

"Yes. If you still want to be my friend."

"Of course."

Quinn wasn't having as much luck. Harry was especially distracted, and didn't seem to remember much about thestrals.

"So, why can't we see them again?" She asked for the fifth time.

"Um...oh! You can only see them if you've seen someone die. Right?"

"How should I know?" Quinn asked. " _You're_ supposed to be teaching _me_."

"Oh. Right, sorry. What else do you need to know?"

"Um...what do they eat?"

"Human flesh." Harry laughed as the girl's eyes widened in shock and fear. "I'm joking. They like to eat raw meat."

"Of what?" Quinn's tone was wary, unsure of whether or not Harry was telling her another 'joke.'

"Any small animal, really. Squirrels, chipmunks, mice...should I continue?"

"No. No, that's okay." Quinn already felt a bit nauseous. "When can we go back to the castle? It's freezing."

"Your cloak looks like it's trying to eat you," Harry said. "I can barely see your _beautiful_ face."

"What?"

"What?"

His response was a bit too quick to be natural, but Quinn decided to ignore it, focusing instead on hugging herself tightly to keep herself warm. She and Harry talked a bit more, before Hagrid dismissed the class, and the two separated to their different friends.

" _That_ was an interesting lesson," Quentin said as he met up with Albany, Amelia, and Quinn at the edge of the forest. "My partner kept making horrible puns with another sixth year Gryffindor. It was strange."

"I enjoyed that very much." Albany sighed happily. "I think it was very productive."

"Amelia, where did you get that jumper?" Quinn asked her friend curiously. Amelia's face turned a light shade of pink.

"Oh, it's, uh...Tristan's." Her voice was almost inaudible. "He said I could keep it." She looked at the skeptical faces of her friends. " _What?_ I asked if he wanted it back, and he said I could keep it. Besides, it's warm."

"And two sizes too big," Albany mentioned. Amelia ignored her friends' laughter, wrapping her arms around herself for even more warmth.

"And don't act so innocent. I saw you and Luke. He was holding your hand." Now, it was Albany's turn to turn red.

"We're just friends."

"For now, at least," said Quinn, an evil look on her face. Albany groaned.

"Quinn, if you screw this up for me…" The rest of the threat was left open for imagination, as lightning struck in the distance, and the four friends raced to the castle, none of them wishing to be caught in the downpour of rain.


End file.
